Kara and I have been talking about making a Thai Chicken Wrap since day 1 of LLP. Sometimes ideas need to cook in our heads for weeks, months, years until we’re ready to take a stab at them. Finally we were ready!
Years ago, Kara and I would go with my Mom to Long Grove (like.all.the.time) to shop and eat. My priorities in life clearly have not changed. We either ate at the Peppermint Stick or Joanne’s Cupboard. And of course we stopped in the General Store for appetizers. 😉 As I’ve complained previously, Long Grove isn’t what it used to be and both of those restaurants are history. Dunzo. Joanne’s had literally the best Thai Chicken Wrap in the whole world. So good that when it closed unexpectedly we were devastated and tried tracking down Joanne in case her restaurant moved. No dice.
We’ve been deprived of the Thai Chicken Wrap for probably 7+ years. Of course we wanted to recreate it at home, but always feared it wouldn’t be as good as we remembered. Joanne’s Thai Chicken Wraps were served in tortillas but otherwise the filling was how we remembered. The peanut sauce soaked into the rice and chicken mixed with the crunchy cucumbers. Yum!
As soon as we were finished picturing these little guys I promptly scarfed down 4 lettuce wraps. Maybe not quite as good as Joanne’s, but pretty darn close!
Here’s what you’ll need
Start by dicing the cucumber and green onions. Put these aside
In a large skillet, add the cooked white rice and carrots
Add in the peanut sauce
Mix together and heat through
Now stir in the cooked chicken. Add in more peanut sauce to taste
Serve in lettuce wraps topped with fresh cucumbers and green onions and a sprinkling of peanuts
Ingredients
1 head Boston Bibb lettuce
2 chicken breasts, cooked and diced
1 cup carrots, julienned
2 cups cooked white rice
1 cucumber, diced
3 green onions, finely diced
¼ cup peanut sauce
¼ cup peanuts, roughly chopped
Directions
Dice the cucumber and green onion; set aside. Separate the Boston Bibb lettuce leaves and layer on a plate or serving dish.
In a large skillet, add the cooked rice and carrot. Pour the peanut sauce on top and stir together. Cook for a couple minutes, just until heated through. Add the cooked chicken and stir together. Add more peanut sauce if the filling looks dry. Once chicken is heated through, transfer the filling to a serving bowl. Mix in the cucumbers, green onions and chopped peanuts just prior to serving.
Wraps can be filled now if serving immediately. I prefer displaying the filling and lettuce separately and making them ‘self-serve’.
Source: A Live Love Pasta original (inspired by Joanne)
